Canadian Mental Health Week from May 5-11, 2025, offers a powerful opportunity to spark change. Living with mental health challenges often forces people to hide behind a “mask” to protect themselves from judgment and discrimination – this year’s theme is “Unmasking Mental Health”, encouraging people across Canada to look beyond the surface and see the whole person.

Health & Wellness Fair at RSS – May 7th

Grade 8,10, & 12 students will attend the annual Health and Wellness Fair on May 7th at RSS. Students visit interactive and informational booths hosted by many of our community partners.

Bounce Back a free support for adults and youth 13+

BounceBack® is a free skill-building program designed to help adults and youth 13+ manage low mood, mild to moderate depression, anxiety, stress or worry. Delivered online or over the phone with a coach, you will get access to tools that will support you on your path to mental wellness.  Learn skills to manage low mood, stress, and worry with the support of a coach.With the right tools and practice, you can bounce back to reclaim your mental health.

https://bouncebackbc.ca/

Virtual Sessions here in Revelstoke and from across the province

Parent & Caregiver Series – Having Courageous Conversations with Your Child – with Hilla Shlomi CYMH

May 13 – 6:30-8:00 in the RSS Library or Click here for the virtual link

Talking with your child about their mental health struggles and risky behaviours is hard and scary. Many parents avoid it because they don’t know where to start… some worry they will say the wrong thing and make the situation worse… In this workshop, parents will learn about youth’s risky behaviours (e.g., substance use, self harm, suicidal behaviours) and explore ways to have courageous conversations about these behaviours with their children.

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Family Smart
click here to see dates and register

FINDING & CREATING CONNECTION WITH KIDS
- TUESDAY, MAY 6, 2025 6:30-7:30
Connecting with kids can feel challenging, especially when they are struggling with their mental health. Whether we are a parent or a caring adult in a young person’s life, what we say and do matters. Simple, caring conversations and shared moments—no matter how small—can have a meaningful impact.

Join us online for a candid conversation with parents who have navigated these challenges firsthand. They’ll share their experiences, struggles, and the ways they’ve found to stay connected—even when it feels impossible. These parents are also Family Peer Support workers, offering guidance to other families facing similar journeys.

SUPPORTING KIDS WITH SUBSTANCE MISUSE – WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2025 6:30-7:30
As parents and caregivers, how we talk about substance use shapes how young people see it. This session explores insights from those with lived experience, offering ways to support without judgment.

Topics We’ll Cover:

Strength-Based Conversations – Focusing on resilience over challenges
Deficit-Based Thinking – Recognizing and reframing unhelpful narratives
Trauma-Informed Language – How words shape understanding and healing
Boundary Setting – Why it’s so hard and how to navigate it
Taking Care of You! – Prioritizing your well-being while supporting others

SUBSTANCE USE AND THE POWER OF SUPPORT – THURSDAY, MAY 8, 2025 6:30-7:30
Fear is often the loudest emotion when our kids are involved in substance use—but what if we led with care instead? Join us online for an important conversation with Guy Felicella, a renowned advocate and speaker, as he shares how connection and relationship can make a difference in substance use and addiction. Learn how we can show care not just for our kids, but for the broader community impacted by substance use disorder.

Guy Felicella is an international public speaker and advocate for drug policy reform. Overcoming a two-decade substance use disorder, he has turned his life around after years of homelessness, gang involvement, and surviving overdoses in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Now, Guy passionately promotes harm reduction, trauma therapy, and faster access to treatment, using his story of resilience and recovery to inspire others and push for compassionate drug policies and addiction support.

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Open Parachute

The Ministry of Education and Child Care, in partnership with Dr. Hayley Watson, Adolescent Clinical Psychologist and Founder of Open Parachute is hosting three free webinars focused in helping you create a personalized step-by-step plan for implementing substance use prevention skills in your home. Dr. Watson will focus on specific steps you can take to ensure that you and your family are supported as you teach substance use prevention skills to your child/youth.

Key Takeaways:

Learn the skills that will help prevent your child and youth from using substances
Navigate the challenges that arise while teaching these skills to your child and youth
Create a step-by-step plan for implementing substance use prevention strategies
Increase your ability to effectively support yourself and your child/youth at the same time

Time: 6:00-7:30pm PST (includes Q&A!)

Please register in advance by selecting the session which you would like to attend:

May 7th – 6:00-7:30pm PST
May 8th – 6:00-7:30pm PST

 

Health Promoting Schools Resources

The Benefits of Kindness: Helping our Kids Harness the Superpower of Kindness

As powerful as Wonder Woman’s inner gift of super-human strength, positive psychology research tells us that the superpower of kindness is in all of our kids. We can help our kids to unlock this natural ability and utilize this superpower to be happier, have better relationships and can help our kids promote a pay it forward generation. For more information see:

The Benefits of Kindness: Helping our Kids Harness the Superpower of Kindness | Kelty Mental Health

 

Starting Conversations About Bullying: Resources for Families

Bullying can significantly impact a young person’s mental health and well-being. Families and educators can play an important role in intervening if bullying is suspected. Check out our tips for parents and caregivers on how you can support your child if they are being bullied, or if they are bullying.

Bullying | Kelty Mental Health